Chapter 33.2

On the third day after Zhou Jian’s wedding, he and Li Xiao resumed their braised meat business. Li Xiao planned to leave after the Lantern Festival, but until then, he thought he might as well make some extra money since he had nothing else to do at home.

Jiang Rou didn’t quite agree with this. She wanted him to take a few days off at home and rest instead of working so hard.

But Li Xiao didn’t listen.

Within a couple of days, trouble arose at their stall. After the New Year, several new food vendors appeared at the city market. One vendor went too far, taking over the stall that Li Xiao and Zhou Jian used the previous year. They even named their stall the same and sold the exact same types of food.

When Li Xiao and Zhou Jian weren’t there for the first few days, some of their old customers asked the new vendor about their relationship with Li Xiao and Zhou Jian. The vendor falsely claimed that they were all part of the same business.

Initially, Li Xiao and Zhou Jian didn’t want to cause any trouble, but they couldn’t tolerate the situation either. So, they set up their stall directly across from the impostors. Li Xiao’s face was the best proof of authenticity—hardly anyone who had seen him would forget him.

Their old customers quickly returned, commenting that their braised food tasted better. Although the braised intestines had a distinct taste, it was a unique flavor that could be enjoyed. Unlike the newly opened stall across the way, which had a rank, unpleasant taste, as if the food hadn’t been properly cleaned.

Zhou Jian, who was good with words, proudly explained that their recipe was a secret, and the intestines were washed several times to ensure cleanliness.

Unexpectedly, even though Li Xiao and Zhou Jian hadn’t caused trouble for the other vendor, the rival group took the initiative to confront them. Jealous of the crowd that had gathered at the brothers’ stall, the rival vendor sent seven or eight people in the late afternoon to smash their stall.

Li Xiao wanted to fight back, but Zhou Jian stopped him. “It’s just the two of us, and besides, your right foot isn’t fully healed yet. If you get hurt, your sister-in-law will definitely be upset.”

Hearing this, Li Xiao reluctantly restrained himself, his hands clenching into fists at his sides.

Zhou Jian was also furious, watching helplessly as their stall was destroyed. His expression was grim. If they had been in their hometown instead of the city, he wouldn’t have tolerated such an insult.

They had never experienced such humiliation before.

Because their stall was attached to their cart, the damage to the stall also broke the cart. With no other choice, the two of them had to push the broken cart back home.

What usually took two hours by bike now took much longer, and by the time they returned to their town, it was already dark.

Jiang Rou had been anxiously waiting at home, unable to concentrate on her book all afternoon as she worried about their late return. As the sky darkened, she even considered asking someone to check on them.

When she finally saw the two of them pushing the cart back in such a disheveled state, she felt a wave of relief and didn’t ask any questions. Instead, she simply invited them inside to eat.

Zhou Jian didn’t stay to eat, quickly saying goodbye and heading home, worried that Wang Yan might be getting anxious.

Li Xiao, exhausted from the long walk, was drenched in sweat, and his right foot was aching badly. After washing his face in the bathroom, he sat down on a bench in the main hall to eat, but his hands trembled as he picked up his chopsticks.

Jiang Rou noticed it and quietly got up to fetch him a spoon from the kitchen.

Li Xiao took it silently.

After dinner, Li Xiao took the tools to the yard to repair the car. Jiang Rou didn’t care about him, and she and Li Xin gave the little girl a bath together, then Li Xin took a bath, and finally Jiang Rou.

After washing up, Jiang Rou returned to her room. As she passed by the door, she saw Li Xiao holding a light in one hand and a wrench in the other—his expression serious.

She placed An An in the bed to play and sat down beside her, reading her a book. An An was now learning to roll over. Jiang Rou had demonstrated this to her several times on the bed the other day, and An An seemed to remember. 

Whenever she was on the bed, she would try hard to roll over, even succeeding a couple of times, flipping from her back to her stomach, breathing heavily with the effort.

By the time Li Xiao returned to the room, An An was already exhausted and had fallen asleep.

He gently moved the baby to the cradle and, seeing that Jiang Rou wasn’t moving, laid down on the inner side of the bed.

Jiang Rou noticed it was getting late, so she put down her book as well.

She turned off the light, and the room was plunged into darkness.

As soon as she lay down, the man next to her scooted closer and hugged her. Jiang Rou tensed up for a moment, then relaxed and asked what had happened during the day.

Li Xiao initially tried to brush it off: “The cart just broke down halfway.”

Jiang Rou wasn’t fooled and directly exposed the lie, “Broke down that badly? Did someone crash into you?”

Li Xiao didn’t respond.

Frustrated, Jiang Rou pushed him and demanded, “Tell me the truth.”

Left with no choice, Li Xiao recounted how their stall had been smashed at the market. Hearing that Li Xiao hadn’t gotten into a fight, Jiang Rou felt relieved and praised him: “You did the right thing. Confronting them head-on wasn’t worth it. People like that are either taking advantage of their power or are just bullies used to gang up on others.”

She then advised, “You should rest at home for a few days and avoid drawing attention. Don’t worry about it too much. Their food doesn’t taste good, so even without you there, they won’t last long.”

Li Xiao didn’t respond but patted her on the back, saying, “Go to sleep.”

Jiang Rou thought he had heard her and closed her eyes, falling asleep peacefully.

-o-o-o-

However, Li Xiao got up before dawn the next morning.

Noticing his troubled expression, Jiang Rou frowned and pulled him back, asking, “Where are you going?”

Li Xiao glanced at her, gently pressing her back down onto the bed. “Go back to sleep; I’m just heading out for a bit.”

Jiang Rou didn’t let go, looking at him suspiciously. “Where are you going?”

The stall had already been destroyed—what was the point of going out?

Then it hit her. “Is this about what happened yesterday? You can’t go! Didn’t we agree you’d rest at home? You walked so much yesterday. Do you not care about your right foot anymore?”

Li Xiao didn’t expect Jiang Rou to know him so well. He didn’t say anything, but she guessed everything.

But he didn’t listen. He replied, “I never agreed to that last night.”

How could he ignore something like this? He hadn’t fought back yesterday because he knew he’d be at a disadvantage, but if he didn’t go today, it would seem like he was truly a coward.

Fearing she would worry, he added, “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

With that, he jumped down from the bed.

Jiang Rou sat up in anger and shouted, “Li Xiao—”

By then, he had already opened the door and run off.

Jiang Rou, fuming mad, threw her pillow to the ground.

This man was definitely going to cause trouble.

Sure enough, around noon, Wang Yan hurried over with Zhou Hong, saying that someone had come to inform her that Zhou Jian and Li Xiao had gotten into a brawl in the city and were now in the police station’s custody.

Wang Yan had often followed Zhou Jian around, so his friends recognized her and informed her directly. Jiang Rou, on the other hand, hadn’t been introduced to Li Xiao’s friends. Initially, he hadn’t thought it was necessary, and later on, he was worried that their coarse language might frighten Jiang Rou.

Hearing the news, Jiang Rou’s expression turned grim.

She had known this would happen and couldn’t help but curse, “I told him not to go, but he insisted. He got what he deserved.”

Wang Yan didn’t know how to respond. Zhou Jian had mentioned the situation to her in the morning, and she had supported his approach, thinking one should stand firm in business to avoid being bullied. 

Now she regretted it.

“Sister-in-law, what should we do now?”

Jiang Rou glanced at her stomach, knowing from Li Xiao that Wang Yan was already two months pregnant. This wasn’t something Wang Yan should get involved in.

So Jiang Rou said, “It’s alright, I’ll go to the city and see if I can bail them out.”

Wang Yan sighed in relief. “That’s good.”

She then pulled out a hundred yuan and handed it to Jiang Rou.

Jiang Rou was taken aback but accepted the money. After sending Wang Yan and Zhou Hong away, she went back inside, informed Li Xin of the situation, then went to the room to feed An An and put her to sleep.

Li Xin assured her, “Sister, don’t worry. I’ll take good care of An An.”

Jiang Rou nodded and asked her to keep the door and window closed. She then took some money and prepared to leave. Before heading out, she visited Aunt Wang next door and asked her to keep an eye on their house.

When Aunt Wang inquired about the situation, Jiang Rou felt embarrassed and only said that something had happened at her mother’s house and Li Xiao was not around, so she needed to go.

Aunt Wang didn’t press further.

Jiang Rou went directly to the bus station. 

She was lucky to catch a bus that was about to depart. She didn’t have to wait long before it started moving.

Jiang Rou chose a long-distance bus, which was faster than the city bus, but by the time she arrived in the city, it was already past 2 p.m. After finding out the location of the police station and the bus route, she switched to a city bus.

When she finally reached the police station, Jiang Rou stated her purpose for being there, and an officer escorted her to the back.

Jiang Rou had a good idea of the process. She followed the officer to fill in the necessary information and paid the fines. Li Xiao and Zhou Jian had brought along eight other men. Since they were the instigators, each of them had to pay fifty yuan, while the others were fined twenty yuan each. The total came to two hundred sixty yuan.

Fortunately, Jiang Rou had brought a bit more money than she originally planned, or it wouldn’t have been enough.

After reluctantly paying the fines, the officer asked her to sit and wait for a while.

Jiang Rou sat in the office with a stern expression on her face.

After a short wait, she heard footsteps approaching from the corridor. 

She turned her head, and there she saw Li Xiao and the others entering. Each of them bore visible signs of a fight—bruised noses, swollen faces. Although Li Xiao looked slightly better than the others, his face and mouth were bruised, and there were scratch marks on his neck.

With his hands in his pockets, Li Xiao walked in with a calm expression. However, as if sensing something, he glanced over and locked eyes with Jiang Rou. His expression froze immediately.

Jiang Rou turned away, refusing to look at him any longer.

Li Xiao pressed his lips together, took his hands out of his pockets, and stood up straight, losing the nonchalant demeanor he had moments ago. He wanted to say something, but the officer called him over to fill out some paperwork.

Zhou Jian also noticed Jiang Rou and felt a bit sorry for Li Xiao. Er Xi, that kid, really lacked awareness. Of all people, he had to bring the sister-in-law here.

After completing the paperwork, everyone else left the room, but Li Xiao remained standing there. One of the boys with acne on his face looked back as he exited and asked curiously, “Brother, why aren’t you leaving?”

Another boy beside him laughed, “Maybe he’s waiting to see if anyone comes to bail those other guys out.”

“Of course, no one will come for them, hehehe.”

Their laughter echoed down the corridor, and the officer in the office frowned, clearly annoyed by the noise. “Do you all want to be locked up again?” he asked sternly.

The boys weren’t intimidated. They covered their mouths, still snickering. One of them even gave a mock salute, mimicking a police officer from a Hong Kong movie, albeit clumsily.

The officer shook his head in exasperation and waved them off, telling them to leave.

Jiang Rou immediately stood up, thanked the officer politely, and walked out, deliberately avoiding looking at Li Xiao. 

As she passed by him, he tried to reach out and grab her arm, but Jiang Rou deftly avoided his touch.

Watching her walk away, Li Xiao awkwardly scratched his nose and quickly followed her.

The police officers in the office, witnessing the scene, had to suppress their laughter.

Outside the police station, Zhou Jian had already led the others away, trying to give Li Xiao some privacy.

Jiang Rou, however, wasn’t concerned about that. She headed straight for the bus stop and waited. Li Xiao walked over and stood beside her, asking softly, “Are you mad?”

Jiang Rou pretended not to hear him, staring intently at the ground.

Li Xiao cleared his throat and continued in a low voice, “I was wrong, okay? I won’t do it again next time. But this time, they crossed the line. If I let it slide, am I still a man?”

He added, “And you know I’m leaving soon, but Zhou Jian has to stay in the county. If we don’t give those guys a beating, he won’t be able to keep his business going.”

Jiang Rou turned her head and coldly snapped, “Are you done?”

Li Xiao shut his mouth, not daring to speak further.

After waiting for a while, the bus finally arrived. Jiang Rou got on without a word, paying only her own fare, completely ignoring Li Xiao behind her.

But Li Xiao, quick as ever, sprinted to the back, leaving Jiang Rou no choice but to pay for him with a dark expression.

Jiang Rou found a seat at the front and sat down, continuing to ignore him.

Half an hour later, they arrived at the bus station and switched to another bus to return to the county.

Throughout the journey, Jiang Rou didn’t say a word. Li Xiao glanced at the people around them and occasionally leaned close to whisper something in Jiang Rou’s ear when no one was paying attention.

Jiang Rou simply turned her face toward the window.

When they finally got home, Li Xin had already prepared dinner and was sitting at the gate, holding An An. Both had been eagerly waiting; their faces lit up when they saw Jiang Rou approaching.

An An’s eyes were slightly red as if she had been crying. The moment she saw her mother, a sweet smile spread across her face. She waved her arms excitedly, making happy little noises.

Jiang Rou’s heart softened at the sight, and she quickly went over to pick An An up. An An clung to her mother as soon as she was in her arms, burying her face in Jiang Rou’s neck.

She noticed Li Xiao standing behind them and offered him a perfunctory smile, but didn’t reach out to him. It was clear that An An preferred her mother over her father.

Being so young, An An didn’t understand much. She only knew that she hadn’t seen her mother all afternoon and insisted on being held by Jiang Rou even during meals, refusing to let Li Xiao hold her.

Sensing the tense atmosphere between the couple, Li Xin quietly washed the dishes after dinner.

Jiang Rou took An An to the bathroom for her bath. After washing the little girl, she quickly and casually washed herself, then returned to the room to read.

Later that night, after An An had fallen asleep, Jiang Rou climbed into bed, keeping as far away from Li Xiao as possible. 

Every time Li Xiao tried to get closer, she would inch further away until she was pressed against the wall. When he finally reached out to hug her from behind, she abruptly got up and left the bed.

Li Xiao sat up quickly. “Where are you going?”

Jiang Rou hadn’t planned to respond, but after hearing his question, she suddenly turned back with a cold smile. “Go back to sleep; I’m just heading out for a bit.”

With that, she grabbed her pillow and left the room.

Li Xiao sat on the bed for a while, feeling that her words sounded oddly familiar. After thinking about it for a moment, he realized that he had said the exact same thing to Jiang Rou that morning.

He muttered a low curse, “Damn it! ” 

He regretted ever saying those words to her that morning; after reflecting on his action, he realized he should have chosen his words more carefully.

Hearing the sounds of the door opening and closing outside, he guessed that Jiang Rou had probably gone to sleep in Li Xin’s room.

His gaze finally fell on the peacefully sleeping An An in the crib, and he couldn’t help but mutter, “Your mom has quite the temper.”

-o-o-o-

The next morning, after breakfast, Li Xiao whispered to Jiang Rou, “I’m going out for a bit.”

Jiang Rou didn’t even look up.

Li Xiao awkwardly rubbed his nose and left.

As soon as he was out of sight, Li Xin, carrying An An, sneaked to the gate to check if he was gone. When she saw that he had really left, she hurried back inside and said, “He’s really gone.”

Jiang Rou sneered, “So what if he did?”

Li Xin, holding An An, blinked mischievously.

An An, not understanding anything, just smiled broadly.

Li Xiao wasn’t gone for long. He returned around ten in the morning, carrying a lot of groceries. After coming back, he busied himself with cooking, chopping firewood, and spending the afternoon repairing something in the yard.

That evening, after putting An An to sleep, Jiang Rou tried to slip out again but was stopped by Li Xiao at the door. He looked at her with mild irritation and asked, “Are you addicted to walking out?”

He reached out to grab Jiang Rou. She instinctively tried to avoid him, but this time she couldn’t escape and was caught by the wrist.

Jiang Rou raised her arm to pull away, and in the scuffle, she accidentally punched Li Xiao in the chin. He winced in pain, letting out a sharp breath.

Jiang Rou smirked coldly, thinking he was just pretending.

Li Xiao looked deeply at her, then lowered his head and spat out a mouthful of blood.

It turned out he had actually bitten his tongue.

“…”

For a moment, the tense atmosphere between them froze.